trkingmomoe's picture

    Economist Michael Hudson Points Out Greece's Debt Is Odious And Illegal

    Michael Hudson is a professor of economics at the University of Missouri at Kansas City. He has been an advisor in helping with this debt crises in Europe. He wrote a very good article for Counterpunch a few days ago and there is a follow up video interview that I think will help explain some missing information that is not being talked about right now concerning the Troika and Greece. 

    I wanted to give a good answer to Barefooted's concern about the current Greek government's appearance of selling out the Greek's mandate of no more austerity that they voted for. Unfortunate this is a complicated mess for us to understand because there is a lot to piece together.  Our own media has been asleep at the wheel, which is now normal for them. Maybe the Troika can force us to reform our corporate owned media with their own political agenda to clean up their act?  What we do have is some very good economists in this country that has been shouting from the roof tops about the real facts in this banking mess created by the ECB.  

    I also had some question of my own.  I ran across a short article or tweet, I don't remember which in the last few days, that stated an UK official had introduced a bill to stop 30% of Greece from immigrating.  I thought "what am I missing here?"

    Imposed by the monopoly of inter-governmental financial institutions – the IMF, ECB, U.S. Treasury, and so forth – creditor financial leverage has become the 21st century’s new mode of warfare. It is as devastating as military war in its effect on population: rising suicide rates, shorter lifespans, and emigration of the age-cohort that always have been the major casualties of war, young adults. Instead of being drafted into the army to fight foreign foes, they are driven from their homes to find work abroad. What used to be a rural exodus from the land to the cities from the 17th century onward is now a “debtor exodus” from countries whose governments owe unpayably high sums to creditor governments and to the banks and bondholders on whose behalf they impose their policy.

    http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/07/08/71809/

     

    I also knew the gang at the ECB was wanting to get their hands on something that Greece had. I had read references to energy and oil.  It turns out to be a natural gas pipe line they want that Greece owns through the Aegean Sea. Germany is afraid of losing their access to natural gas. As you listen to the interview you learn how this started the ball rolling for a new Greece government. You will also learn that the referendum vote was not something that Tsipras had just pooled out of his hat, that the Troika had blocked a referendum vote that the former Greek government wanted to do. 

    Here is the follow up video interview of Howard's article that I sited above. It is in 2 parts. You can also read the transcript here.

    http://michael-hudson.com/2015/07/why-greeces-debt-is-illegal/

    You can also go to you tube to watch the interview. 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLhvPB4lyc4dR1qctSCxGFCOvueldVD59k&v=...

    So this is not going to be over with for a long time. 

     

    Comments

    He's fond of hyperbole, and uses it quite effectively. Without discounting his valid interpretations I'm still left wondering where the bottom line is hiding. Clearly the Troika is being heavy handed, manipulative and greedy. Germany, in particular, appears to have very little interest in the survival of Greece or it's current government. The creditors are hungry and out for blood - but Greece is not an innocent victim.

    For all the dialogue about the predatory nature of the IMF, ECB and the European Union in general, there's been far less discussion about what created this hellacious mess. While that's certainly in the rear view mirror at this point, it matters when looking at the view. None of this would be happening if Greece's government(s) along the way hadn't spent borrowed money the wrong way and, more importantly, been unwilling to take repaying it seriously. That does not excuse creditor abuse, but it should take the pity shelter away from Greece.

    There are very serious issues within the Eurozone that have hopefully been brought to the surface - not the least of which being the need for some sort of centralized, democratic governing body. The fractious nature and glaringly political absurdity of this is bald, but it's the Greek people who are left in the dust.


    Latest Comments